Transportation from theVenice Cruise Port

From Stazione Marittima

ABOVE: A fisheye view of the
Stazione Marittima from MSC Poesia during a cruise departure.

To Venice's historic center:

Shuttle bus. Many cruise
ships offer free shuttle buses from the cruise terminal to the
Piazzale Roma, which is the
vehicular gateway to Venice's centro storico.

From the Piazzale Roma, you can walk to the sights (allow 30 to
40 minutes to reach the Piazza San Marco) or take an
water bus of the
ACTV, Venice's public-transit network. (The No. 1 vaporetto is the most
popular water bus, with plenty of scenery to watch as it zig-zags its way up the
Grand Canal to the Piazza San Marco and the Lido.)

People
Mover. The Venice
People Mover is an
automated tram that runs from the Tronchetto parking island to the Piazzale Roma
with a stop at Stazione Marittima, right outside the port entrance. The fare is
cheap, and the ride takes about two minutes.

Alilaguna boat.
Alilaguna, the company that runs Venice's
airport boats, has a Linea blu or "Blue Line" that runs from the
Staziona Marittima ("Terminal Crociere") to the main tourist area of
San Marco and Marco Polo Airport. Travel time to the San Marco stop is 22
minutes.

Land
taxi.
Four-wheeled cabs can take you only as far as the Piazzale Roma. From there,
you'll have to walk or take a water bus. (A cab is worth considering if you're
staying or catching a train in Mestre, on
the mainland. Expect to pay up to €40 for a taxi from the cruise port to Mestre.
Also see our Venice Travel Blog post titled "Mestre
for Cruise Passengers.")

Private car. For a flat fee,
you can have a limousine service meet you at Marittima and drive you to Marco
Polo or Treviso Airport. We can't recommend any companies personally, since we
haven't used such services, but you can search for "venice airport transfers" on
Google or try a booking site like
Shuttledirect or
Airport Transfers Direct.

Water taxi. A water taxi can take you directly from the cruise basin to
the landing nearest your hotel. Expect to pay at least 40 euros for a ride
within the city center. See our Venice
Water Taxis
article for advice and booking information. (Also read the
warning about water taxis in our Venice Travel Blog.)

Note: Viator, our
booking partner, offers a "Meet and Greet" or "Full Service"
arrival transfer service. A hostess will meet you at the terminal, take
you to the water-taxi embarkation point, and--if you wish--accompany you to
your hotel. (The service costs more than hiring a water taxi on your own,
but it does offer convenience and peace of mind.)

To the airport:

Cruise transfer. Most cruise
ships offer transfers (usually on chartered coaches) from the pier to Marco Polo
Airport. Prices are on the high side, but the convenience can justify the
expense, especially if you don't have five hours or more between the ship's
arrival and your flight.

Airport
bus from the Piazzale Roma. Take the People Mover to the Piazzale Roma,
where you can catch an inexpensive
Marco Polo Airport Bus or a
Treviso Airport Bus.
(Treviso's small airport is used by Ryanair, Wizzair, and several other budget
airlines.)

Land taxi. You can catch a
taxi from the stand near the port entrance. Travel time to the airport is 20
to 30 minutes, and the fare shouldn't be more than €50. (Allow plenty of time to
get a cab, since the demand often exceeds the supply. If necessary, you can
telephone the Artisan Cooperative Radiotaxi, which has a stand at the
Piazzale Roma.)

Water
taxi.A water taxi costs more and takes longer to reach the airport
than a land taxi does, but it's an enjoyable alternative to a four-wheeled cab
if you can afford the fare (€110-120) and don't mind walking seven minutes or so
from the airport's water-taxi pier to the departures terminal. See our
Venice Water Taxis article for more
details, and read our
warning about water taxis if you aren't fit or able to handle heavy luggage.

To the railroad station:

Venice
has two railroad stations:
Venezia Santa Lucia, in
the city center, and Venezia
Mestre on the mainland. Many long-distance express trains stop only at
Mestre. (Trains to or from Santa Lucia also stop at Mestre.)

To reach the Venezia Santa Lucia station, take the People
Mover to the Piazzale Roma and follow the crowd across the large, modern
Calatrava Bridge. The station is five or 10 minutes from the Piazzale Roma
on foot.

To reach the Venezia Mestre, station, we recommend hiring a
land taxi. The ride is quick, and the fare is reasonable.